


Turn Around

by magequisition



Category: Stargate SG-1
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2011-11-09
Updated: 2011-12-20
Packaged: 2017-10-25 21:33:12
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 11
Words: 18,314
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/275015
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/magequisition/pseuds/magequisition
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>After the beginning of her leave goes horribly wrong, Sam turns to Daniel for comfort. Sam/Daniel with minor Sam/Jack. Rated for sex, most chapters T or lower.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

Sam stood up from the couch with a sigh. After the last mission, SG-1 had been ordered on two weeks leave by General Hammond. Most people, she knew, would be grateful for the break, but Sam had been back at her house for two hours and was already itching to get back to work. She looked at the clock for what seemed like the hundredth time. 7:03 PM.

Suddenly, her stomach began to rumble, and she realised she hadn't eaten dinner yet. Smiling, she headed to the fridge, thankful to have something to do. The smile quickly dropped from her face when she opened the fridge and realised she hadn't been grocery shopping in a while. Things had been so hectic that there hadn't been any point.

"Damn," she mumbled to herself before brightening up. She headed for the phone, quickly picking it up and dialling, only to hang up again before the second ring. "Fishing. Right." Pulling open a drawer below the phone and quickly rifling through the few papers within, she pulled out a Chinese takeout menu and lifted the phone receiver again to place an order. She'd go grocery shopping tomorrow.

*********

Sam was putting away the last of her groceries when the phone rang, the volume of it in her otherwise-silent kitchen startling her. She shut the door to the fridge and stepped across the room quickly to answer it.

"Ca-" she began to answer automatically, before remembering she wasn't in her lab on base. "Hello?"

"Hey, Carter!" came a very familiar voice.

"Hi, Sir," Sam said, a smile crossing her face.

"Sam, we're on vacation. Quit with the 'Sir' stuff, would you?"

"Of course. Sorry. What's up...Jack?" his first name crossed her lips awkwardly.

"Well, I ended up not leaving for my fishing trip last night. I'm leaving today instead. Thought I'd extend the offer one last time. I mean, really, what else are you doing?" Sam sighed.

"Nothing, actually," she paused, trying to determine if the next words would qualify her for a diagnosis of certifiably insane. "Sure. Let's go fishing."

"Great. Want me to pick you up?"

"No. That's not necessary. You've told me how to get there before, I can find it. I need to get a few things together. I'll meet you there." She heard a slight chuckle on the other end of the line.

"Sure, Carter. See you in a couple of hours."

Sam hung up the phone slowly, suddenly feeling uncomfortable with her impulsive decision to join Jack. She was sure of two things: one, something major was going to happen; and two, there was an excellent chance that this would end badly.

*********

They'd decided to have a beer after dinner. One had turned into two which had turned into many, and soon they were both incredibly drunk. As they laughed about something neither of them would remember the next day, Jack suddenly fell quiet.

"Hey, Carter."

"Yeah, Jack?" she asked, still laughing.

"Hey, quit laughing at me. I gotta tell you something." The suddenly serious tone of his voice made her pause.

"Not laughing at you. Wha's up?" she asked, her words slurring slightly.

"I gotta tell you...you're really beautiful. 'Specially when you laugh. I like it when you laugh, Sam." A flush began to spread over Sam's cheeks.

"That's pretty too." Jack said, reaching out a hand to Sam's cheek to draw her gaze to his. Brown eyes locked with blue and both were absolutely still for a split second before moving in unison, crushing their lips against one another's. Sam raised her arms to wrap them around his neck and gripped the hair at the back of his head. He responded by using the hand that was on her shoulder to rotate their bodies slightly and press her backwards to lay on the couch they were sitting on. His lips moved to trail along her jawline and then down her neck, eliciting a soft moan from Sam as his teeth lightly grazed a sensitive spot at the join between her shoulder and neck. Sam released one of her hands from the back of his head to slide it down his chest and then back up as it slipped underneath his t-shirt. Her fingers skimmed over his muscles as she explored his bare skin, lightly travelling through the soft curls of his chest hair. He pulled away from her momentarily to pull the offending shirt off, quickly lowering himself towards her again.

*********

Sam woke up slowly the next morning at first unsure of where she was. As she drew closer to full consciousness, she became aware of the pounding in her head and groaned, then bolted upright as the events of the previous evening began to hit her. It was chilly in the bedroom and she pulled the quilt up over her naked torso as she glanced around for her clothes. It was only as she did this scan of the room that she suddenly realised she was alone in the bed.

"Jack?" she said aloud to no response. She spotted her shirt from the night before across the room, near the door, and she slowly stood up to retrieve it, shaking off the dizziness that accompanied the action. A shirt, a glass of water, and an aspirin. That was what she needed. She still hadn't managed to locate her pants, but she'd be able to get some once she made it to the guest room, where her bag was. She felt a few aches other than the one in her head as she moved across the room, reminders of the night before. She pulled on the long tank top she'd worn the day before and exited the room, leaving the door open on the way. She glanced around, still uncomfortable with the lack of Jack's presence, when she realised the shower was running. Slightly mollified, she made her way to the guest room to pull on a pair of pyjama pants under her tank top. She'd need to shower before getting properly dressed.

She was in the kitchen, drinking her second glass of water and making coffee, when Jack emerged from the bedroom, fully dressed but his hair still slightly damp.

"Morning," she said.

"Morning, Carter," he said. She could hear reluctance in his voice and her stomach dropped. "Sorry I was already up when you woke up. I usually get up pretty early."

"It's...fine," she said softly. She wasn't sure why she felt so awkward all of a sudden.

"Look," they said in unison.

"Sorry." Sam said. "Go ahead."

"You sure?" Jack asked.

"Yeah."

"Look, Sam, about last night..." Sam held up a hand.

"I changed my mind. How about neither of us say anything? At least not until after breakfast?" she met his eyes for the first time since he entered the room and Jack was stunned to see something he'd never seen in her gaze before.  
Vulnerability. He'd seen Sam hurt before. Sad, scared even. But this deep-set vulnerability was new, and if he was honest with himself, it was terrifying.

"Sure. Breakfast." Jack said, forcing the trepidation out of his voice.

********

They ate in relative silence, avoiding eye contact. They tidied up the few dishes they had made in the same silence, then grabbed their coffee mugs and headed into the living room, sitting at opposite ends of the couch.

"So..." Sam said, cautiously.

"So." Jack replied, looking her directly in the face. She quickly looked down, exceptionally interested in some invisible speck on the edge of her mug and internally kicking herself for acting like such an idiot.

"Look, Sam..." he paused. "It's not a secret. We both know how we feel."

"Clearly," she said wryly. Jack's cheeks flushed slightly and he grinned for a moment before becoming serious again.

"Our situation hasn't changed."

"Nope."

"This was a bad idea."

"Terrible. I knew I'd been right all along. I shouldn't have come here." Sam shifted uncomfortably in her place on the couch. She'd already set her mug down on the end table beside her and she began to fidget her hands. "In fact, Jack, you know, I think I'm going to grab my bag and go. I don't want to wreck your leave." She stood up and began to walk away from the couch, stopped in her tracks by Jack's hand grabbing her arm from behind. She was spun around and crashed into him. He put his hands at her lower back to steady her so she didn't fall.  
They were so close. Jack caught her eyes again and dropped his forehead against hers. In an uncharacteristically unguarded moment, he let his eyes drift closed.

"I don't want you to go."

"I have to. We both know it, this-" she was stopped short when he kissed her again. She sank into the kiss but moments later pulled herself away sharply.

"No. Jack. We can't. It's not worth our jobs. SG-1 needs us." Jack sighed. He could hear doubt in her voice.

"You're right. You're right. This is crazy. There is no way....not now. You always were the smart one, Carter."

"I know," she smiled wistfully at him before walking quickly into the guest room to grab her overnight bag. Slinging it over her shoulder, she headed for the door of the cabin.

"See you in a couple of weeks, sir." Sam said, slipping back into the cold formality that made things so much easier. "Enjoy your leave."

"Yeah, Carter. You too. See ya." Sam slipped out the door, closing it softly behind her and dashing to her car. She flung her bag into the back seat and climbed into the front, starting the car and driving away as quickly as she reasonably could.

She'd been on the highway for five minutes when she felt the need to pull over. And when she did, something very unusual happened.

Samantha Carter dropped her forehead against the steering wheel and cried.


	2. Chapter 2

Daniel was bored. There was something to add to the 'things he'd never seen coming' list. He'd been on leave for four days and he was bored out of his mind. He'd done some reading, some translations for fun...but he couldn't shake the boredom. Apparently he'd developed some sort of appreciation for socialisation the last five years. Groaning, he shut the book he was reading and glanced at the clock. 5:30. As if on cue, his stomach rumbled. He ran through his mind a list of his coworkers vacation plans. Jack was fishing. Sam was invited but not going. Teal'c was off world, visiting his son. He shrugged at the empty room and leaned over to grab the phone, deciding on a whim to see if Sam wanted to get dinner. He felt an odd pull to talk to an actual human being. He dialled quickly and waited for Sam to answer. it was four rings before she finally did.

"Hello?" Daniel heard. He barely recognised Sam's voice--she sounded exhausted.

"Oh, hey. Sam. It's Daniel. Uh, is everything okay?"

"Yeah, Daniel. Fine. What's up?"

"Oh, well, uh, I was kinda bored. Thought I'd see if you had plans, if you wanted to grab dinner or something." he heard her sigh.

"I dunno, Daniel," she said. "I don't really feel like going out tonight."

"Oh, uh, sure. Sorry, Sam. Give me a-"

"Look, don't worry about it. I don't feel like going out. But if you want, you could come over. We can order pizza." She didn't sound thrilled about the idea but Daniel knew Sam and knew she was trying to spare his feelings. He wasn't sure he wanted to intrude when she was clearly not well, but something was telling him to go.

"Yeah, okay. Look, don't worry about ordering in though, okay? I'll pick up a pizza on my way over. You want anything in particular on it?"

"No. Anything's fine, Daniel. Thanks. See you in a bit?" her voice was slightly more cheerful, but he could hear the strained tone.

"Yeah. I'll be there in about 45 minutes."

"Alright. See you then."

"Bye, Sam." Daniel hung up the phone with a heavy click, and quickly stood up to change his clothes and leave the house. He didn't like the sound of Sam's voice at all. Nobody should be that exhausted four days into leave.

*********

Forty-five minutes later on the nose, Daniel was knocking on Sam's door, pizza and beer in hand. The beer had been an afterthought when he had seen a liquor store across the street from the pizza place. He had run over to pick it up while he waited for the pizza. He waited for a minute, but there was no response from Sam. He tried again. Finally, the door opened.

"Hey, Daniel. Come on in." Sam said, pulling the door all the way open. Daniel stepped forward, taking in a quick account of Sam's appearance. She was wearing sweatpants and a t-shirt, normal enough for someone on vacation with no plans to leave the house, but her short hair was everywhere and she looked like she hadn't slept since they'd been ordered to take a break.

"Thanks. Look, I've got pizza. And beer." He added the last one in hastily. Sam offered him a half-smile.

"Thanks."

"Where do you want me to set these?" he asked.

"Bring it in to the living room. I'll grab some plates from the kitchen, but I've got stuff all over my table right now."

"Sure." Daniel replied, slipping out of his shoes before heading further into Sam's house.

A couple of minutes later, they were both settled at opposite ends of the comfortable couch in Sam's living room.

"So, uh, Sam. How's your leave been?" Daniel asked. There was a long pause before she answered.

"Okay," she said, taking a bite of pizza. She swallowed before adding, "I haven't done much. I...went out the first night but I've pretty much just been home since then. How about you?" The reluctance in her voice was clear as day.

"Oh, pretty boring," Daniel said, keeping his voice as light as he could in an attempt to disguise his concern. "That's why I called tonight. Used to be I could spend two weeks at home with nothing but books and translations easily. Turns out I've become more social over the last five years. Who'd have guessed?" he asked. Sam gave him the little half smile she'd given him at the door again. She was trying, he had to give her that. But she wasn't fooling him.

"Sam, what's wrong." It was a statement, not a question. She grabbed the beer sitting on her coffee table and took a sip before shaking her head.

"Why would you say something's wrong?" She was trying so hard to lighten her voice. But they'd gotten fairly close over the last five years of working together, and there was no way she was getting out of this.

"Sam, you can't fool me. What happened? Are you alright?" Daniel was becoming more and more concerned with her every denial, as well as with the speed at which she was drinking. She'd taken another long sip as he asked that and set down what sounded like an empty can.

"I'm fine, Daniel," she said, but her voice was cracking. Daniel set his plate down and took hers from her hands, placing it next to his. Allowing her some space, he looked hard at her.

"Sam. I know you better than this." His voice was soft, but direct. "Talk to me."

Sam looked up from her lap, where she had been fidgeting with her hands after his removal of her dinner plate. Her blue eyes were shining with tears that refused to spill.

"You can't tell anyone."

"Of course not," he said. The tears half-scared him. He couldn't stop himself; he reached out to take her hand as she drew a ragged breath.

"Well, you guys probably noticed that Jack and I...I mean, we weren't...but..." Daniel nodded. Just about everyone on base with any kind of regular contact with SG-1 had figured out how Sam and Jack felt about each other. They'd hidden it well, of course, and it never seriously interfered, but to those that knew them the signs were clear.

"He left late for his fishing trip. Invited me to go again. I wasn't doing anything, so I agreed to go." She inhaled deeply again, shaking on the exhale. "I...we..." she had to stop as the tears threatened to spill. "We were drunk. The next morning we knew it was a mistake, agreed to keep it professional, and I left."

Daniel had not been expecting this. He felt his stomach drop. Sam had slept with Jack, and now she was obviously heartbroken. He was torn between wanting to hug Sam and wanting to leave then and there, drive to Jack's cabin and kill him with his bare hands. The internal debate lasted only a minute, of course, and he pulled Sam into his arms.

"I'm so sorry," he said, rubbing her back slowly. Sam clung to him, burying her face in his shoulder.

"Don't be. It was stupid. I never should have gone." her voice was muffled, between his shoulder and the tears that had finally fallen. Daniel didn't say anything, just held her until her breathing slowed.

Sam tried to sit up. Daniel lessened his hold on her slightly, but didn't fully let her go, just slid his hands down her arms as she backed up a little. She pulled one hand free and reached behind her to a box of tissues on her end table. Wiping at her eyes, she gave him a weak smile.

"I'm sorry."

"Sam, don't ever apologise. Ever." He scooted an inch closer to her and met her eyes. "Look at me. You don't have to apologise. If you need me, call. Anytime. You hear me?" He implored her. She nodded, wiping at her eyes again. He could see the beginnings of new tears beginning to well. He hoped against hope these ones were good tears.

"Thanks, Daniel." He just smiled.

*********

In the end, they decided to watch a movie, The Da Vinci Code. Halfway through, Daniel felt a light pressure on his shoulder. He glanced over to find Sam had fallen asleep and was leaning on him. He couldn't stop a grin from forming at the sight, but he gently put his arm around her and readjusted her slightly so she wouldn't have the world's worst strain in her neck when she woke up. She murmured something as he shifted her, but didn't wake up.

When the movie ended, Daniel shut off the TV and very carefully eased his way out from underneath Sam. He slipped a pillow underneath her head and used the blanket over the back of the couch to cover her. He briefly considered trying to get her to her room, but as she'd clearly hardly slept in the past four days he decided it wasn't worth risking waking her. He put the leftovers of their dinner in the fridge, scribbled her a quick note, which he left on the coffee table, and turned out all the lights except a single lamp in the living room, in case she happened to wake up. He returned to her side for a moment, deciding if there was anything else he should do. She looked peaceful enough and was definitely sound asleep, so he allowed himself to run his hand over her hair once.

"Night, Sam," he whispered, dropping a light kiss on her temple before grabbing the spare key she kept in a drawer in her desk and leaving.


	3. Chapter 3

Sam woke up slowly, blinking rapidly to try and clear the sleep from her eyes. She began to stretch her limbs, attempting to work out the stiffness that inevitably resulted from her night on the couch. She pushed herself up to a sitting position and noticed the piece of paper on the table.

 _Hey Sam,  
You fell asleep during the movie. Didn't want to wake you. The leftover pizza's in the fridge. I took your spare key so I could lock up. Give me a call.   
Daniel_

Sam smiled. She stood up and stretched again before heading to the bathroom to take a shower. She stripped off her clothes and realised with a grimace that she hadn't showered since coming back from Jack's cabin. She winced at the thought of Jack, but realised she did feel better after talking to Daniel the night before. She turned the water on very hot and stepped in, letting it wash away the grime of the past few days.

*********

Twenty minutes later, Sam stepped out of the shower and wrapped her favourite green towel around herself before heading to get dressed. She pulled on something comfortable, not paying too much attention to what exactly it was beyond 'clean', and went to the kitchen to pick up the phone.

"Hello?" came the reply after two rings.

"Daniel. Hey." Sam said.

"Sam! Hi. How are you doing?" Daniel's voice was notably brighter once he realised who was on the other end.

"I'm...okay. Thanks. I'm feeling better today. I slept like a rock last night. Guess I needed that." She didn't say it, but she hoped Daniel knew she meant his company, even more so than the sleep.

"I'm glad. So, uh, I've got your spare key. Hope you don't mind, I didn't want to leave your house unlocked while you were sleeping."

"Yeah, I saw that on the note. Thanks, Daniel. I really appreciate it."

"No problem." They both went quiet for a moment, suddenly at an inexplicable loss for words.

"I was thinking about going for a run today, or maybe hiking. Actually getting out, you know? I think it'd be good." Sam said.

"Yeah, that's a good idea. I'm sure the fresh air will be great. It's a nice day." Daniel agreed.

"Do...do you want to come?" She asked. "I mean, I totally understand if you have plans already, but if not..." She regretted asking. She didn't want to seem clingy.

"I don't have plans." he said, interrupting her thoughts. "I'd love to. I can give you back your key at the same time. When were you thinking?"

"Well, whenever. I'm pretty much ready to go, so name a time." They finalised meeting plans and hung up.

Sam went to finish getting ready, her step lighter than it had been since her second day of leave.

*********

They had decided to meet at the trailhead for the hike towards St. Mary's Falls. Neither of them had done this particular trail before, but it was easy to get to and the hike itself was supposed to be just challenging enough to be worth it. It wasn't far from either of them, and they met in the parking lot an hour later. Daniel was already there, standing next to his car when Sam pulled in to the lot, so she turned easily into the spot beside his. She reached behind her to grab her small hiking backpack out of the backseat, throwing her keys into the small zippered pocket in the front, before climbing out of the car, locking the door before shutting it.

"Hey!" she said. She was surprised by the cheerful tone that came out of her; more surprised to realise she felt it.

"Hey, Sam. You ready to go?"

"'Course. You?"

"Always." Sam grinned and they headed towards the trailhead.

The beginning of the hike was fairly easy, with just a slight slope upwards, so they kept up a quick pace while they talked.

"You weren't waiting long, were you?" Sam asked.

"Nah. Five minutes or so."

"Good. Sorry I ran late...couldn't find my water bottle."

"Hey, no problem. So...how're things?" Daniel asked cautiously, knowing he had asked her on the phone earlier, but wanting to be sure. He was rewarded with a smile.

"I'm much better, Daniel. Really. I'm sorry I was such a mess last night. But...thanks. For coming over and everything. I really do appreciate it."

Daniel tried to slow the giddy smile that started to spread across his face, but failed miserably. "Hey, anytime. You ever need anything, call and I will be at your door with pizza and beer in an hour or less." Sam chuckled.

"You're a good friend, Daniel. I know I've said it about a hundred times today, but thanks." Daniel just kept grinning as they continued their hike.

*********

The hike wasn't a terribly long one and in an hour and a half they'd made it to the falls. They found a boulder big enough for both of them and sat down to have some water. Sam pulled two granola bars out of her backpack and offered one to Daniel.

"Thanks." he said, taking the offered snack. They opened the bars, stowing the wrappers in Sam's backpack until they got back to the parking lot, where there were garbage cans. They sat in silence for a few minutes, enjoying the falls while they ate. Sam was surprised by how natural it felt to be sitting in silence with Daniel. She finished her granola bar and stood up. A little warm, she decided to pull off her lightweight hiking jacket and tie it around her waist before pulling her little digital camera out of her bag and snapping a quick picture of the falls. As she turned to slip it back in to its pouch, she caught Daniel's gaze on her.

"What's up?" she asked, a slightly self-conscious smirk crossing her face.

"Oh, nothing," Daniel said. "Just didn't know you were a photographer." He was a terrible liar. Sam knew that wasn't exactly what was going through his head but didn't know what was, so she didn't argue the point.

"I'm not, really. Sometimes I like taking pictures when I go hiking, though. The falls are beautiful, aren't they?" she asked, turning away to look out at them.

"Yeah, beautiful." Daniel said, but his eyes weren't on the falls.

*********

The hike back was easy, being entirely downhill. Sam and Daniel made quick work of it, laughing and joking the whole way down. They exited the trail far quicker than either of them preferred.

Daniel stood between Sam's car and his own while she emptied the garbage from their hike out of her bag and into the bin a few feet away. He grinned at her as she walked back over to him, opened the back door of her car, and slung her backpack on the back seat before shutting the door again.

"This was great, Daniel." Sam lifted her face the short distance it needed to look her friend in the eyes, but looked away quickly. "We should go hiking again."

"Yeah," Daniel agreed. "Sounds good, Sam." He sounded suddenly distracted.

"Everything alright, Daniel?" Sam asked, furrowing her brow. She didn't like the sudden change in his tone.

"Yeah, Sam. Sorry. Got distracted for a second." He grinned at her again, and Sam couldn't help but grin back. Impulsively, she leaned forward and wrapped her arms around his neck for a hug. Stunned for a moment, he didn't respond instantly and she began to pull back, concerned that she'd overstepped some unknown boundary. He quickly placed a hand at the small of her back, stopping her from pulling away before wrapping his arms around her properly in a hug.

"See you soon, Sam."

"Yeah, give me a call. Maybe we can get another hike or two in before our leave is up." Daniel nodded as they pulled apart, and they turned towards their respective cars. Sam had to walk around before she could climb in. As she turned to open her door, she leaned over the top for a minute. Daniel hadn't closed his door yet.

"Hey Daniel?" she asked.

"Yeah, Sam?"

Sam paused. "Uh, have a good day. Talk to you soon."

It wasn't at all what she'd intended to say.

"Talk to you later, Sam," he said before slowly closing his door. Sam climbed into her own car and shut the door, but as she buckled her seatbelt, turned the key and began to drive away, she smiled.

She could still feel the sensation of Daniel's hand at the small of her back.


	4. Chapter 4

Daniel sighed. It was his first day back on base after leave, and he was surprised to realise he wasn't as thrilled as he might once have been. Once he'd started spending time with Sam, being on leave became far more appealing. They'd gone hiking twice more, and had either gotten together or talked on the phone every day of their vacation after that first pizza night. Daniel was positive she wasn't totally over what had happened with Jack, but every day she seemed to be getting closer and closer to the Sam she'd been before that mess had happened. He walked into his office and sat at his work table. Glancing at the time, he decided to work on some translations he'd started before their last mission. SG-1 was due for a briefing of the last two weeks in an hour. That was enough time to get a good chunk of the translation out of the way before he was stuck in meetings for likely the rest of the day.

*********

Daniel entered the briefing room ten minutes before they were due to start. The translation he was working on had gone faster than he'd expected, and he didn't want to get going on another one only to have to stop before he'd really gotten anywhere with it. He was surprised to find Sam already sitting there.

"You're early," he said, grinning as he took the seat beside her.

"Yeah. It's been...well, it's been an interesting morning so far." Sam said, clearly restraining her speech. Daniel took the hint.

"Well, now we have a whole day of meetings to look forward to....that should take the interest right out of your day." Sam laughed.

"Yeah, I guess I can hope so. I'm not sure how much more interest I can take." Their conversation was interrupted by the entrance of Teal'c and Jack.

"Hi, Teal'c. Jack." Daniel said. "How was your visit to see Rya'c?" he asked, directly addressing Teal'c.

"It was enjoyable, Daniel Jackson," said Teal'c in his slow, deep cadence. "It felt very short. However, I am happy to have returned to Earth."

"Fishing was great, Daniel, thanks for asking." Jack said sarcastically.

"Sorry, Jack. Catch anything?" Daniel asked shortly.

"Nothing." Jack said, obviously taken aback by Daniel's shortness. He looked beside Daniel to Sam.

"Hey, Carter," he said casually.

"Hello, Sir. Did you enjoy your trip?" she asked.

"Some parts more than others." Jack replied, looking her directly in the face.

"Glad to hear it Sir." Sam replied, voice level. Daniel noticed the almost imperceptible shake of her hand on her lap as Jack and Teal'c sat in the seats on the other side of the table and moved his leg over just slightly so that their knees touched, offering his silent support. The silence was awkward for a moment until General Hammond arrived in the briefing room. Everyone stood.

"As you were. Nice to see you all back. I hope you are sufficiently rested?" There was a murmur of consent amongst the members of SG-1 as they all sat back down into their seats.

"Good. Now. The last two weeks haven't been terribly eventful. However, SG-6 did go on a reconnaissance mission to P3X-983 and came back with some potentially useful observations."

For covering two apparently non-eventful weeks, the briefing was exceptionally long. It lasted clear until the end of the day, excepting the hour General Hammond gave them for lunch. It was 7:00 before they drew to a close.

"Alright, people. Sorry that was so drawn out, but we had to make sure you were all up to speed. You depart for the planet at 0900 tomorrow morning. See you then." He nodded at them and left the briefing room. As soon as he was out of sight, Sam stood up.

"See you guys tomorrow," she said, leaving the briefing room as quickly as she could, not waiting for a response.

"What's with Carter?" Jack asked.

"Couldn't tell you." Daniel said, leaving the room nearly as quickly as Sam had.

*********

Daniel found Sam just as she was leaving her office.

"You okay?" He asked her, looking at her with concern.

"Yeah, fine. Just...it's probably going to be awkward for awhile. Or something. I don't even know why he bothered me, Daniel." The two started walking towards the parking garage. "I'm over it. Beyond over it. You played a part in that," she said, turning her face towards him and offering him one of her bright smiles. Daniel grinned. "But another part of it was that...I do care about Jack but, I don't know that it was quite as much as I'd thought. So this shouldn't be bothering me. Should it?" Daniel shrugged.

"Tough call, Sam. I mean, deeper feelings aside, things did get...intense, briefly, so that's gotta leave something behind." They headed into the parking garage, Daniel staying with Sam until they reached her car.

"I guess you're right." Sam said after contemplating what he'd said for a minute. "But still...I want to move on."

Daniel tried not to read too much into that statement. They stood in silence for a moment before he said,

"I guess we'd better head home."

"Yeah, you're right. The mission tomorrow shouldn't be all that complicated, but it seems like the uncomplicated ones always become the most dangerous." Sam replied, grinning.

"Exactly." Daniel said. Sam reached up to hug him, and he wrapped his arms around her.

"Thanks for walking me to my car."

"Anytime," Daniel said. He released her slowly and began walking to his own car, waving at her over his shoulder as she drove away. His parking spot wasn't far from Sam's, and he reached his own car quickly. Unlocking and opening the door, he sat down and swung the door shut, rubbing his eyes with his free hand as though to rub sleep out of them.

"Get over it, Daniel. Get. Over it." He murmured to himself, just as he'd been telling himself for two years.


	5. Chapter 5

Sometimes, Sam really wished she would be wrong once in awhile. Her remark to Daniel the previous day about uncomplicated missions ending up being the dangerous ones was proving far too accurate. The mission had started off as planned, and they were almost ready to head back to Earth when a major dust storm had kicked up.

"What the hell, Carter?" Jack had shouted over the wind. "You didn't mention anything from the recent scans about problems with the weather!"

"There were no warning signs, sir! Nothing indicated we'd be in for any kind of trouble!" Sam had called back. Blinded and choking on the whirling sand, they couldn't make it back to the gate. They'd taken refuge in a small cave at the bottom of the rocky cliffs which edged one side of the village they were in. Once they were out of the immediate threat, they each poured a little bit of water from their water bottles on cloths from their packs and used them to rid their eyes of sand, but they found themselves limited in what they could do to slow their coughing. They leaned against the walls of the cave, breathing heavily.

"Carter," started Jack, "how long until this is gonna pass?" Sam was reading her scanner intently.

"I can't say, sir. As I said before, it came out of nowhere, and I can't seem to make sense of these readings. As far as I can tell, we'll be here awhile."

"A time, Carter." Jack said, irritation obvious in his voice.

"I told you, sir. I don't know. Best guess....anywhere from 12-48 hours. These atmospheric readings are all over the place. I can't narrow it down any more than that." Sam was becoming increasingly annoyed by the way Jack was acting. As if the dust storm was somehow her fault.

"Keep an eye on the readings. Update me as soon as you know what's going on." Jack said, a bit petulantly.

"Of course, sir." Sam said, putting extra emphasis on the sir. She sighed in obvious irritation and turned back to checking her scanner.

"I'm going to have a look around in here." Jack said, standing up. "Teal'c, you're with me." he headed deeper into the cave. Teal'c inclined his head slightly before following. When they were both out of sight, Sam dropped her head backwards to lean against the wall in exasperation.

"God he's being obnoxious today," she muttered as she had another look at the atmospheric readings. "Daniel, would you mind having a look at these? I dunno, maybe you'll come up with some pattern I'm not seeing." Daniel walked across the cave to sit next to her, leaning over to have a look at what she was holding.

"Doesn't look like much of anything to me," he said. He took it from her hands, his thumb brushing the side of her hand as he took it. A slight flush began to rise in Sam's cheeks and she coughed again to try and cover it. She couldn't explain the heat rising in her face. She was grateful that Daniel didn't seem to notice what was going on, he was so focused on the readings in front of him. He did look up as she coughed, though, and looked at her with concern.

"Are you alright, Sam?" he asked. The coughing had seemed to have ceased a while ago.

"Yeah, I'm fine," Sam said. "Thanks. I'll just grab some water." She opened her pack and pulled out her water bottle, taking a small sip. "So, anything?" Daniel sighed.

"Nothing. You're right, these readings are completely erratic. I don't think there's anything we can do for the moment but wait it out." He set the scanner on top of Sam's pack in front of them. His hands dropped to his sides and began tracing simple patterns in the dust on the cave floor. As he drew a particularly large circle, his finger passed over the width of the back of Sam's hand. She didn't move, just turned to look at him and smiled.

*********

 

Three days later, SG-1 were still stuck on the planet. The dust storm had died off a day and a half before, but the DHD wasn't responding. They weren't sure what was wrong with it, but assumed the weather had done some sort of damage. Unfortunately, there wasn't a power source around strong enough for them to be able to dial home manually, so Sam and Daniel had spent much of the last 18 hours studying the DHD and trying to figure out what had gone wrong. They weren't making much progress but were thankful that after the first night, Jack seemed to have dropped his snarky attitude towards Sam. As she continued to carefully inspect the DHD for any outward sign of damage, her radio buzzed.

"Carter, any luck?"

"No, Sir. None so far." Sam said, obviously frustrated by her lack of progress.

"You and Daniel have been working for 18 hours solid. I want you back at the cave in ten minutes or I'm coming out there and making the two of you get back here." Sam sat back from the DHD and sighed.

"On our way, Sir." She looked at Daniel. "Looks like we've got orders." He nodded and stood up, offering her his hand to pull her to standing as well. She accepted and brushed the sand off her backside once she was up. They turned to start walking back towards the cave, and arrived in record time.

"So here's the deal. You guys need to rest. We need to track down something to eat, because our rations are not going to last us much longer. Teal'c and I are going to head off. You two get some sleep while we aren't here."

"Since, you know, we can't sleep with the two of you talking us to death," Daniel said, eliciting an eyebrow raise from Teal'c.

"Yeah, sure, Daniel. You guys have got probably two hours. We'll buy you more time if we can, but we've really got to get that DHD figured out so we can get back to Earth." With that, Jack and Teal'c grabbed their packs and headed off.

"I don't even know if I'm going to be able to sleep." Sam said. "I'm so frustrated with that stupid DHD!' She kicked at a rock angrily, sending it skittering off into the darkness further into the cave. "It never takes me this long to figure this stuff out." She dropped herself to the floor next to her pack and opened it roughly, yanking out the blanket stowed inside. Daniel dropped more gently to the ground beside her and rested a hand on her back, trying to relax some of the tension he felt there by rubbing gently.

"You'll figure it out. You always do." Sam turned to look at him. Seemingly embarrassed, he quickly pulled his hand from her back and turned his gaze from her to some unknown point in space two feet above her head.

"Daniel." Sam's voice was softer and more calm than it had been, and he dragged his eyes to refocus on her. "Thank you." She leaned over and placed a light kiss on his cheek before pulling the standard-issue air force blanket around her shoulders and leaning back against the wall of the cave. Daniel smiled.

"You're welcome," he said as he pulled out his own blanket and scooted over so he was sitting directly next to Sam, their sides touching. He threw his own blanket over their laps. Sam's eyes were already half closed, but she felt the blanket land on her lap and smiled, fumbling her hand over until it rested on top of Daniel's.

"Thanks," she mumbled again. Daniel smiled, though she couldn't see it through her closed lids, and slipped his hand out from underneath hers to pull lightly on her shoulder. She leaned to the side, stopping when her head met his shoulder. Daniel lifted his arm around her and gave her a light hug before pulling his arm back.

"Night, Sam." He said softly, feeling more relaxed than he had in months, despite their situation.

*********

Another two days passed, with still no luck repairing the unseen damage to the DHD. Sam and Daniel were just about to take a break for something to eat when the stargate swirled into action. Sam hit the button on her radio.

"Colonel O'Neill! Stargate is activated!"

"On my way, Carter." Came the brief response. Sam knew that Jack and Teal'c had hit the ground running. She and Daniel stood up quickly as a set of vaguely familiar faces came running through the gate.

"Major Carter! Dr. Jackson!" came a shout. Sam peered closely at the newcomers as the stargate shut itself tightly. Sam was relieved to see one of the members of the SG team carrying a portable power generator. She walked towards them.

"SG-15 reporting, Major. When SG-1 repeatedly did not check in, General Hammond sent us on a search and rescue. Where have you been?" Sam sighed.

"Here. There was a massive, unexpected dust storm and we've been unable to activate the DHD since it ended." Sam's limbs suddenly felt weak with relief. "We're all okay, but with no DHD and no way to manually activate the gate, we couldn't get back and couldn't call."

"We're glad to see you're alright, Major." Said SG-15's leader. Just then, Jack and Teal'c arrived.

"Colonel O'Neill!"

"Nice to see you, boys." Jack addressed the entirety of the team. "You bring something to get us back home?" One of the newer members of SG-15, someone Jack didn't recognise, held up the power generator he carried. "Perfect. Can we get out of here?" Sam laughed, more out of sheer relief than actual humour.

*********

Noting the past-exhausted state of SG-1 when they came stumbling through the gate not long after SG-15 had been sent to retrieve them, General Hammond ordered them home.

"It's 1900 hours anyway. Go home. Get some sleep. We'll debrief at 0800." his tone clearly indicated there was no room for debate.

"Yes, sir." They muttered nearly in unison.

"We're glad you're home, SG-1." General Hammond said.

The team made their way slowly to the locker areas to stow their things and pick up what they needed to take home.

"I have to get something from my office," Sam said. "I'll see you guys in the morning."

Twenty minutes later, Daniel was peering inside Sam's office. She was leaning over her computer, typing rapidly.

"Sam." he said, causing her to jump.

"Daniel! Don't sneak up on me. You scared the crap out of me!" she lectured.

"Sorry. Sorry!" He said quickly, holding his hands up in surrender. "I thought you were just picking something up."

"I was..." Sam replied reluctantly. "But then I thought maybe I should type up some of my notes, you know, while it's still fresh."

"No. You need to listen to General Hammond. Go home. Get some sleep." Daniel said firmly.

"I don't see you taking off in any kind of a hurry."

"I waited because I know you well enough to know you'd pull something like this." Daniel raised his eyebrows at her, and Sam smiled sheepishly.

"Fine." She clicked a few more buttons on her computer, clearly saving her work, and shut it down. Pulling her jacket from the back of her chair, she stood up and slid her arms into the sleeves. "Let's go." she said.

They went to the parking garage together and as he had before, Daniel walked Sam to her car. "God, it's going to feel good to get home." Sam said. "I'm desperate for a shower. Not sleeping sitting up will feel pretty great too." Daniel grinned.

"Yeah."

Sam threw her purse into the backseat of the car. "I'm not gonna lie though, it's going to be weird being alone." She laughed. "You'd think I'd be used to it by now." Daniel shrugged.

"Not necessarily." He said. "Hell up until five years ago I was never happier than when I was alone, and now even I think it's going to be weird going home to an empty house." Sam nodded, a response on the tip of her tongue but she bit it back.

"See you in the morning?" she said instead, her voice lifting at the end even though it wasn't really a question.

"Yeah." Daniel said. Sam wrapped her arms around his neck in a hug and Daniel returned the gesture. His arms slid around her waist, pulling her tightly to him. Sam felt a warmth in the pit of her stomach which quickly spread to her extremities and slid her hands down his arms. He loosened his hold slightly to look at her questioningly. For the second time in recent history, Sam gave in to an impulse. She leaned forward and kissed him softly on the lips. After a clearly startled moment, he responded. The kiss was short and chaste, and unlike the last time she'd been impulsive, Sam didn't feel even the slightest twinge of doubt.

"Goodnight, Sam." Daniel said softly as he reluctantly pulled his hands from her hips.

"Night, Daniel." Sam replied, climbing carefully into her car to drive away.


	6. Chapter 6

Daniel wasn't completely sure how he got into this situation. It was the weekend after their return from P3X-983 and SG-1 was, at the recommendation of General Hammond, doing something enjoyable. At least, that had been the plan. They'd gotten together for a barbecue at Sam's house. Everything had been going great, but a few drinks in, someone--Daniel couldn't remember who, at this point--thought that it would be a great idea to go to the bar. For some reason, they had all agreed. Well, all except Teal'c, who in his usual way had simply inclined his head stoically and gone along with whatever they did. They made it to the bar and had been there an hour or so when Daniel heard his name being called over a microphone.

"So, next in our song list, we have, "Fat Bottomed Girls", originally by Queen, to be performed this evening by one Daniel Jackson! Daniel Jackson, please step up to the karaoke stage."

Daniel heard Jack cracking up laughing behind him and turned to glare at him. Jack attempted-and failed miserably-to straighten his expression, and settled on pushing Daniel towards the stage. Once he was close to the stage, the crowd cut him off from behind until he had no escape, and he climbed the three steps onto the low stage.

Daniel changed his mind. He knew exactly how he'd gotten into this situation, and he was going to kill Jack. Though, at least the song was good.

"Uh," Daniel said as the song started playing. He looked at the crowd in front of him and saw Sam watching him closely, a grin spreading across her face. Daniel began to sing when the melody began, hoping against hope he wasn't totally off-key and ruining any hope he'd held of moving forward with Sam. The chorus came on and he looked directly at her.

 _Ohhhhh, won't you take me home tonight  
Ohhhhh, down beside your red firelight  
Ohhhhh, and you give it all you've got  
Fat bottomed girls, you make the rockin' world, go round!_

He was stunned to see her not only looking at him and grinning, but dancing. He hadn't taken her for a dancer. She really had had a lot to drink, he thought to himself idly as he finished the song. He headed off the stage in a hurry and rejoined the group.

"Jack, I am going to kill you. As soon as there is only one of you." Daniel said, realising he wasn't quite seeing properly.

"Awwww....Did Danny have too much to drink toniiiight?" Jack laughed, teasing him. Sam threw her arms around Daniel's neck and twisted to look at Jack over her shoulder.

"Fuck off, Jack," she said. Clearly, Sam had consumed more than her usual amount of alcohol as well. She turned back to face Daniel again. "I had no idea you could sing."

"I probably can't. You're drunk," he laughed.

"So are you!" Sam accused.

"Yes. Yes, you are probably right." Daniel agreed. Sam laughed.

*********

"I'm going to kill whoever suggested we go to the bar last night." Daniel groaned, popping two advil into his mouth and chasing them with a large mouthful of water. Teal'c had driven Jack home the night before, since he hadn't been drunk, but Daniel had crashed at Sam's.

"I think it was Jack. Can I help?" Sam asked wearily. "I haven't gone out to a bar since...well, a long time, and while it was kind of fun to dance again, i apparently forgot every rule about not mixing alcohol."

"Want to go track down some really greasy breakfast food?" Daniel asked. Sam brightened up marginally.

"Absolutely. If I'm going to relive my Academy days, I might as well go all out." She laughed. They grabbed jackets and headed out to Sam's car.

********

Twenty minutes later, they found themselves sitting side-by-side in a typical greasy spoon diner, menus closed in front of them. Their waitress finally came to the table to take their order.

"Hi! I'm Trixi!" She said in a obnoxiously perky voice that matched well her bad blonde dye job and bright blue eyeshadow. "What can I get for you two this morning?"

"Ah," Sam said, fighting not to laugh. "Um, can I get the Rise and Shine breakfast plate, please? Eggs scrambled, brown toast."

"Of course! And what can I get for you, handsome?" Trixi asked Daniel with a wink.

"Um, same thing, but eggs sunny side up. Please." Daniel said, unable to get any more words out. He pressed his lips together hard until Trixi walked away, when they both burst into laughter.

Two hours and too much coffee later, they emerged from the diner, heading back to Sam's car a short walk away and feeling remarkably more clear-headed.

"That was fun." Sam laughed. "I don't remember the last time I ate somewhere like that. But it's exactly how I remember them being." Daniel nodded.

"I don't think one is so different from the next. You're right though, that was fun. But, uh, let's not do last night again anytime soon, OK?"

"Agreed," Sam said. "Although, that was a pretty great rendition of Queen you belted out." She grinned. "Couldn't help but notice you looking at me while you were singing. Hope that's not an indication that you think I have a fat bottom." She raised her eyebrow at him, humour evident on her face.

"Oh, obviously, Sam." Daniel said, rolling his eyes at her before reaching around behind her and grabbing her butt briefly. "Nah, I think it's just fine." Suddenly he stopped, stunned at his own action. "Uh, sorry, Sam. That was, uh, totally uncalled for," he stammered. Sam walked a few steps before she noticed he'd actually stopped moving. She turned and walked back towards him.

"Daniel, relax." Her face was totally calm and she grinned at him. "Do you see me complaining?" Daniel exhaled deeply in an attempt to release some of his tension.

"Guess not," he said. As they began to walk again, now in sight of Sam's car, Daniel took a breath for courage and wrapped his fingers around Sam's hand which was dangling very close to his thigh as they walked. Sam smiled and he felt her adjust her hand's position so she could give his a light squeeze.

*********

"Hey Sam? I've got to run out for a few minutes and grab something," Daniel said. "I'll be right back." It was 4:00 PM and Daniel was still spending the day with Sam.

"Oh, sure. What's up?"

"Nothing major. Just remembered something I've got to do."

"Sure, Daniel. I'll see you when you get back. Just let yourself in."

Daniel grabbed his jacket and headed for his car.

 

He returned half an hour later, a bag of Chinese takeout boxes in one hand and a small plastic case in the other.

"What've you got there? Other than the food, that's obvious. Thank you, by the way." Sam said. She hadn't really felt like cooking.

"Well, remember when we were talking about movies earlier, and we started talking about movies we watched when we were kids?" Daniel asked. Sam nodded. "Well..." he held up the plastic case.

"The Land Before Time???" Sam asked incredulously. "You found it on DVD? That's fantastic! Let's bring the food into the living room and watch it!" A blush rose into her cheeks. Daniel grinned. She's adorable, he thought. He was happy to have brought that look to her face.

"That was my plan," was what he said.

Slightly more than an hour later, the end credits were rolling on the screen. The food had long been demolished, and Sam had curled up into Daniel's side. Against the background music of Diana Ross singing the end credit song, Daniel heard a light sniffle. He looked down to see Sam tearing up.

"Sam? What's wrong?" He asked, suddenly concerned.

"Nothing," she said, looking up at him and grinning with slightly teary eyes. "It's nothing, I promise. This song just always makes me weepy for some reason." Daniel grinned down at her, pulling her tighter to him and kissing her forehead lightly. Sam smiled again.

"Thank you for bringing that movie, Daniel. I haven't seen it in years. I do love it."

"You're welcome." He grabbed the remote off the arm of the couch with the hand that wasn't wrapped around Sam and clicked the TV off.

"Hey Daniel?" Sam asked.

"Yeah?" He turned to look at her again and the next thing he knew, she was kissing him. Her arms wrapped around his neck and he felt her shift to her knees to be at a better angle.

Daniel didn't hesitate. He moved the hand that had been cuddling her to him to wrap around her waist and pull her closer to him as he rotated his body, pulling his feet up on the couch so he was facing her. The kiss was slow and gentle, but it was far from the chaste kiss of a few nights before. Daniel swept his tongue lightly over Sam's lower lip and her mouth opened obligingly, her tongue just as anxious to explore, both of their movements slow but deliberate. Daniel slid one of his hands up her back to play with her hair, fingers tangling slightly in the short style. Sam adjusted her legs, sliding them out from underneath her and past his hips so that she was straddling his lap. She pulled herself closer to him, knocking herself slightly off-centre and gasping lightly as she felt him hardening against her thigh. She pulled her lips away from his for a moment and pressed her forehead against his. Their eyes met and they were lost for just a minute, staring at each other.

"Bedroom." Sam mumbled before pressing her lips to his again and scrambling off of his lap. Daniel moved as quickly as he could to follow her towards their destination. Sam was barely in the room before her t-shirt was hitting the floor, and she sat on the bed quickly. Daniel pulled off his own shirt before crawling up over the end of the bed and looking at her.

"What?" Sam asked, a blush rising in her cheeks.

"You're...fuck, Sam, you're beautiful." Daniel couldn't think of anything to say beyond that so he put his hands on her shoulders and pushed her backwards, crushing his lips to hers again. She kissed him back hotly, hands roaming up and down along his chest and back. She scraped a nail over his nipple and a shot of pleasure ran straight to his cock. He gasped slightly and moved his lips to her neck, trailing kisses from just below her earlobe down to her collarbone. His hand slid down her torso, skimming over her toned abs before lightly brushing under the waistband of the loose sweatpants she wore. Her breath sped up and Daniel slipped his fingers under the waistband of the panties she wore as well. Sam pulled his head back up to where she could attack his lips with her own again, moaning lightly and tilting her hips up as he began to move his hand slowly further within her underwear. He could already feel a slight dampness on the curls he found there and he pulled his hand out briefly to push her sweatpants out of the way. Sam lifted her hips to make it easier for him and took care of her light blue panties herself, never once pulling her lips from his. Returning his hands to their former position, Daniel slid a finger lightly over the outside of her sex, feeling dampness collecting on the tip. Pausing for a moment just at her centre, Daniel slowly slipped a finger inside her when she moaned.

"Please, Daniel." He added another finger, slowly pumping in and out of her. He brushed his thumb lightly over her clit and she gasped, throwing her hips forward before fumbling at the waistband of his khakis. She managed to undo the button and zipper but couldn't push them past his hips. He pulled his fingers from her folds, eliciting a groan of loss from Sam, so that he could yank the offending pants as well as his boxers and throw them from the end of the bed. He leaned down and pressed his lips to hers again.

"Sam," he said, gasping lightly. "Do you have..." he trailed off.

"Nightstand." she mumbled. Daniel looked over and noticed the single drawer on her small nightstand. He pulled it open and began to fumble amongst the few items in there. As he searched blindly, he suddenly gasped as he felt Sam's cool hand wrap around his erection and begin to stroke with a smooth, even pace.

"God, Sam," he grunted as his hands finally fell on the small foil packet he'd been looking for. He ripped it open as carefully as he could with his teeth and quickly unrolled it onto himself. Sam's legs parted and he positioned himself between them, teasing her entrance with the tip of his cock. She moaned and tilted her hips up against him. Daniel took the hint and entered her, quickly burying himself deep inside of her. Sam moaned.

"Fuck, Daniel, you feel amazing," came her voice as she buried her face in his neck, lightly licking and nibbling at the sensitive flesh she found there. Daniel slipped a hand between them and began to work at her clit while he moved steadily in and out of her, eliciting a series of unintelligible noises from Sam.

"Are you close?" he gasped, praying that she was because he didn't think he was going to last much longer. He flicked his thumb over her clit once more and she responded by clenching around him, fingers gripping his short hair as she came hard around him. Daniel gasped, continuing to move through her orgasm but trying desperately to restrain his own until she was finished. Her muscles were clenching around his cock and he didn't know how much longer he could last.

"Don't hold back, Daniel..." she mumbled breathlessly against his ear as she slowly began to coast down from her high. "I know you want to come."

Hearing the words from Sam's mouth was too much and two thrusts later he was moaning as he filled the condom, his dick pumping hard into the thin latex.

They stayed there, wrapped around each other for a few minutes until their breathing slowed. Then, carefully holding the base of the condom, Daniel slipped out of her and removed it, tossing it into the garbage can beside the bed before rolling back over to take Sam into his arms again.

"That was...." Sam said, apparently unable to finish the thought.

"Incredible." Daniel supplied. He pressed his lips lightly to hers and she responded. They kissed slowly for a few minutes, simply enjoying the moment. Daniel lifted himself up slightly.

"I'm going to go get a cloth so we can clean up a little. Can I get you something? Water?" he asked.

"No, I'm perfect. Thanks." Sam said, smiling up at him. He left the room briefly, arriving back with a damp washcloth a few minutes later. She could see he had already cleaned himself up and took the warm cloth from him, using it to lightly wipe herself down. Shivering as the warm water began to evaporate, she pulled the covers up to her stomach before pulling back one edge, an obvious invitation. Daniel smiled and slipped between the covers, wrapping his arms around her and pulling her back to spoon against him.

Despite the fact that it wasn't quite 9pm, they fell asleep happily in the afterglow of the evening.


	7. Chapter 7

The alarm blared obnoxiously. Sam groaned, fumbling beside her in an attempt to shut it off. After a few attempts, she finally succeeded. She groaned again and rolled over to snuggle into Daniel's chest.

"Morning, Sam," he said, already awake.

"Morning..." she mumbled, closing her eyes again.

"Wake up Sam." Daniel whispered, his lips brushing against her ear.

"Make me," she grumbled drowsily. Daniel backed up just slightly from her and bent his head down, kissing her softly.

"Wake up, Sam," he whispered again, this time against her lips. Sam smiled but kept her eyes closed as Daniel kissed her. "We have to get to the base." Sam opened her eyes.

"Buzzkill." She glared at him but couldn't hold the dirty look for long. It was Monday morning. Since the end of the movie Saturday night, they'd only left Sam's bed for the most urgent of needs. She smiled again before levering herself upright so she could see the clock.

"Ugh. Almost six already. I guess we should get moving if we're going to be there by seven." She leaned over to kiss him again before swinging her legs off the side of the bed and standing up. "I've got to go grab a shower." She pulled off the oversized t-shirt she'd thrown on sometime in the middle of the night. Looking over her shoulder at him, she grinned.

"Join me?"

Daniel smiled and followed her to the bathroom.

*********

Sam pulled into her parking spot with a grin on her face. She hadn't expected the weekend to go the way it had, but she'd be lying to herself if she said she hadn't hoped for it eventually. She scanned the lot as she climbed out of the car and saw Daniel wasn't there yet. They'd come separately because they'd agreed it was best to keep their relationship hidden when they were at Stargate Command. Since Daniel wasn't military it wasn't technically against regulations, but Sam was sure General Hammond wouldn't allow them to keep working together. Checking the parking lot entrance one more time and not seeing Daniel's car, she headed for her lab.

A few hours later, Sam was working busily at her lab computer transcribing some notes from the last couple of offworld missions. She was in the middle of deciphering a particularly messy section when a knock on the door caused her to jump. She swung around quickly as the door opened.

"Daniel! You startled me." She said, half-accusingly.

"Sorry, Sam. How's it going?" he asked.

"Alright. Something I can do for you?" she asked, trying to maintain her professionalism. She was glad he'd stopped by. As odd as it seemed to her, she realised she'd missed him.

"Nothing specific, but I know you've been locked in here all morning, and since it's now after 1300 hours I thought I'd drag you out of here to go to the mess for lunch." Daniel grinned.

"Is it really that late?" As Sam asked her incredulous question, her stomach growled audibly. "Oh. I guess it is," she said with an embarrassed smile. "Yeah, let's have lunch." Clicking a few times with her mouse to save her work, she stood up and headed for the door. Closing the lab up behind them, they walked down the short corridor to the lift.

"So, how are those translations going?" Sam asked.

"Fine," he said. "I've started on some new ones. Some of those artefacts we brought back from the last mission have inscriptions on them. I haven't worked them all out yet, but they could be useful." The door to the lift opened and they stepped inside. The door zipped closed again and Daniel quickly put his hands to Sam's shoulders, pressing her backwards against the wall and kissing her.

"Hi," Sam said, smiling.

"Hi," Daniel replied as the elevator slowed and then jerked slightly to a stop. By the time the door opened, they were standing appropriately side by side, and disembarked to go eat lunch.

*********

 

She was surrounded by sand. She was covered in it, choking on it. She didn't know where the storm had come from, and she couldn't find the others.   
"Daniel!!" She called. "Jack! T-" she coughed hard as her mouth filled with the swirling sand. She couldn't call out. Couldn't breathe. She fell to her knees....

Sam sat bolt upright in her bed, breathing hard and clutching at her quilt.

"Shit. Oh my God. Oh my God." She took a minute to reorient herself after the nightmare from the mission to P3X-983. She pulled her knees up to her chest and tried to calm her breathing. She leaned over and grabbed the cell phone on her nightstand. Flipping it open, she typed a short text message.

 _Hey Daniel. You awake?_

She glanced at the time. 2:33 am. Probably not. She was just about to put the phone back down when it buzzed in her hand. She opened it again.

 _I can be. What's wrong?_

Sam smiled.

 _Nothing. Sorry I woke you._

 _Sam, don't give me that. What's wrong._

 _It's silly._

 _It's not._

 _I had a nightmare. About the mission with the sandstorm. I couldn't find any of you and I was choking on the sand._

 _We're all OK, Sam._

 _I know. I told you it was silly._

 _If it bothered you enough that you had to text me, it's not silly. Do you want me to come over?_

 _Now you're being silly. Go back to bed, Daniel. I'll see you in a few hours._

 _Are you sure?_

 _I'm fine. Really. I feel better now that I've talked to you._

She did. It was amazing how even when he wasn't with her, Daniel could calm her down. Of course, she still preferred him being with her, but she knew if she said that he'd get in his car this second and drive over. Daniel didn't sleep enough as it was.

 _As long as you're sure..._

 _I'm positive. Go back to sleep. Thank you._

 _Anytime, Sam. For you, anytime._

Sam set the phone back on her nightstand, took a sip of water from the glass she kept there, and lay back down, willing herself back to sleep.


	8. Chapter 8

Daniel moved around his kitchen anxiously. He and Sam had been together for three months, and she'd finally convinced him to cook her dinner. Daniel wasn't a bad cook, exactly, but Sam was surprisingly fantastic and he was anxious to impress her. Given that after three months he still found himself staring at her in awe occasionally, wondering what on Earth or beyond had possessed her to kiss him all those weeks ago, he wasn't surprised that he was now obsessively checking the chicken to make sure that it wasn't drying out. He stirred the noodles on the stove one last time, giving them a little poke to make sure they were done right and turned off the heat before heading over to the kitchen table to make sure everything was set up right.

Most of their date nights had been fairly casual. They'd spend time at one of their houses with a movie and either cook or get takeout. Occasionally, though, they decided to dress it up a little and tonight was one of those nights. He'd set the table already, and was kicking himself for not checking sooner to see if he'd had any candles. He did, but they were mostly-melted stubs of emergency candles, and he decided that the table looked better without them. He had bought her flowers, though, and lay them across the place mat at her spot at the table. He was just running in to the kitchen to take the broccoli off of the heat when he heard a soft knock at the door. He grinned. Most of the time Sam just walked in--she did have a key--but when they decided to go all out, they really did. Daniel made sure everything was turned off in the kitchen before rushing over to the door, stopping abruptly in front of it to pull it open smoothly.

His jaw dropped.

Sam smiled brilliantly. "Hey, you." Daniel stepped back briefly to allow her room to step inside the house. He shut the door and then put a hand on her waist, pulling her to him and pushing her back against the closed door, kissing her hard.

"Hi," he said. "You look...incredible." It was the first word that came to his mind and it didn't seem accurate, somehow. She was wearing very dark blue jeans with a sleeveless dark teal coloured top that wrapped around her body and showed just enough to be distracting. Her hair was flared around her face and she'd done something with her makeup--Daniel didn't know what it was, but it somehow managed to make her eyes look even bigger than usual. He kissed her again.

"Hi," he said, only vaguely aware of the fact that he was repeating himself like an idiot.

"Hi," Sam answered, grinning at him. "Like my new top?"

Slowly regaining control of his faculties, Daniel smirked. "Ah, it's alright." Sam smacked his arm and laughed.

They ate dinner leisurely, then moved the dishes to the kitchen deciding to wash them later. Sam found a small jug--making a mental note to buy a vase or two for Daniel's house--and set her flowers in it with water.

"Thank you again for the flowers. They're beautiful," she said as they moved into the living room to sit on the couch.

"You're welcome." Daniel said. He was glad he'd thought to pick them up on his way home that day; the smile on her face when she saw them had been priceless. Sam was really good at her tough soldier act, and while it wasn't a facade he knew that deep down she loved all the romantic feminine stuff. He sat sideways on the couch, his feet up, and opened his arms to her. She sat down in front of him, curling up slightly on her side to cuddle her cheek against his chest as he wrapped his arms around her.

"I'm glad it's the weekend," she said. "I should be used to it by now, but I do still hate not seeing you much during the week. I mean, I see you, but I don't get to see you when we're on base or off world. You know?"

"I know," he said, one hand rubbing gentle circles on her back.

"Mmm, that's nice," she said, letting her eyes drift shut for a minute. She opened them again and looked up at him. "Do you want to watch a movie or something?"

Daniel shook his head. "I was thinking we could just sit tonight. It's been awhile." They'd been on extended off-world trips the last two weekends, which meant they'd had hardly any time together. Sam smiled.

"Sounds good, although...." she trailed off.

"What?" Daniel asked.

"I don't want to just sit." Sam said, stretching herself upwards the short distance to kiss him. Daniel responded instantly, his hands slipping from her back to her hips as she turned herself around to face him. Sam wasted no time as she plunged her tongue into his mouth. She tasted slightly of the wine they'd had with dinner, and it had an intoxicating effect on Daniel. He sucked her lower lip lightly into his mouth and scraped his teeth along it, causing her to take a sharp breath as she slipped her hands under the hem of his black shirt and traced her fingers lightly up and down his chest. His lips began to trace a path down her neck and she tilted her head to the side to allow him access.

"God I missed you," she mumbled as his lips pressed hard at the spot where he could feel her pulse.

"Missed you too," he said against her skin before continuing down towards her collarbone, hands roaming behind her to rest on her ass. She reached behind herself with one hand and tugged lightly on the thick tie of her shirt, allowing it to fall open slightly. She sat upright briefly and let the fabric fall from her shoulders , dropping it to the floor. Her bra was royal blue with a sheer, textured black overlay which stood in stark contrast to her smooth, pale skin. It cut low across her breasts and Daniel felt his pants grow noticeably more constraining as he moved a hand to cup one breast, his thumb skimming across the soft fabric causing her nipple to harden. He used his other hand to pull lightly on her shoulder and she leaned towards him, bringing her lips to his neck as his hands slid behind her to loosen the clasp between her shoulder blades. Pulling the fabric from her arms, he tossed it to the ground to join her shirt before leaning forward to capture a hard nipple between his lips, pulling it in to suck lightly. Sam gasped and arched her back towards him, grinding her pelvis against his. His tongue swirled slowly around the hard bud before moving his attention to the other one.

"This....is not fair," Sam said breathlessly. "You are entirely too dressed right now." Her hands began to fumble with the buttons on his shirt as he continued his ministrations and pulled it open before pulling back from him to leave room to pull the offending garment off. Kissing his chest as she moved, Sam worked her way down his body and quickly pulled open the button and zipper on his pants, yanking them down along with his boxers to toss aside, freeing his cock from its restraints. Daniel groaned in pleasure, shifting underneath her. His eyes fell closed as he felt her cool fingers wrap around him. She stroked him slowly twice and Daniel gasped as he felt her tongue trace slowly around the tip of his erection, collecting the drops of precome that were already beginning to leak from it before taking him slowly into her mouth. Daniel moaned, hands roaming from her shoulders to tangle in her hair and back again. He opened his eyes and looked down at her.

"Oh, fuck, Sam," he gasped. The sight of her lips around him, head bobbing as she sucked him was almost too much and he quickly grabbed the base of his cock, thankful that she hadn't taken too much of him into her mouth yet. Sam's eyes flicked upwards to lock with his and she grinned around him before slowly sliding him out of her mouth. She sat up and Daniel was grateful for the chance to regroup--sort of--as she opened her jeans and slipped them off. Her underwear matched the bra she had been wearing before and he sat up quickly, hooking his fingers in the waistband and yanking them down before putting his hands on her hips and pulling her down towards him again. He vaguely noticed the arm of the couch digging into his back but Daniel didn't care. Sam's hand was between them, stroking him again, her thumb swiping across the tip with every stroke and Daniel thought he would go crazy if he didn't get inside of her soon. His hands were caressing every inch of her skin he could reach and he brought one of his own hands down between them, wiggling slightly to make room, as he slipped a finger inside of her to test her readiness. His finger slipped through her wet folds easily and Sam moaned, her hand stilling for a moment. He added a second finger as he thrust in and out of her slowly, eliciting another moan. He stopped, leaving his fingers buried inside of her.

"Daniel, please."

"Please....what?" He asked. He was teasing her, he knew exactly what she wanted but he was going to make her work for it. She pressed her lips to his ear, and her voice was soft but remarkably stable as she whispered,

"Your cock. In me. Now."

The reaction was instantaneous. His cock twitched hard against her as he pulled his fingers out of her and she lifted herself slightly to slide down on top of him, burying him fully inside of her, both of them silently thanking anyone that might be listening that Sam had seen Janet--without giving anything away--about starting on birth control. Staying still for a moment, overwhelmed by the feeling of having him, just him with no barriers, inside of her, she grabbed the hand that had been fucking her and, eyes locked with his, slowly took one finger, then the other, into her mouth to lick them clean. Daniel groaned, thrusting up against her hard. Her mouth released his fingers and his hands traveled quickly over her body to grip her ass again, encouraging her as she began her own thrusting pattern against his. She dropped her head and kissed him hard, nibbling at his lower lip as she thrust her tongue into his mouth. He felt her beginning to tense and he could tell she was close to orgasm.

A few moments later, they were both flying, moaning each others' names and gasping terms of endearment as they ran their hands along each others' bodies to provide the much-needed tactile sensations which kept them connected to each other both as they reached orgasm as well as on the slow journey back down to consciousness, bodies pressed against each other and breathing slowly beginning to regulate. Sam rested her cheek against Daniel's chest, breathing deeply to try and slow her heart rate while Daniel ran the fingers of one hand gently through her hair, the other arm wrapped securely around her waist holding her tightly to him. As they both began to breathe normally, Sam turned her head to place a soft kiss on his collarbone. They lay that way for several minutes, just holding each other until Sam looked up at him.

"We should get cleaned up....I'll be in the shower if you want to join me." She slowly moved off of him, gasping lightly as he slid out of her and walked slowly to the bathroom. Daniel waited just a minute so he could watch her walk away before getting up and following her.

*********

The shower took twice as long as it should have, the hot water sending their bodies into overdrive again. When they finally collapsed into Daniel's bed, still damp but finally clean, they were both spent and simply held each other, Daniel's hands rubbing Sam's back lightly. Sam looked up at Daniel, whose eyes were beginning to get heavy, and brushed a hand along his cheek before kissing him softly.

"I love you," she whispered. Daniel's eyes shot open from their drowsy, half-closed state. He noticed a blush begin to grow on Sam's cheeks and felt her squirm slightly, and he knew she had taken his reaction as negative. He put a finger under her chin and tilted her face back up to look at him.

"I love you," he said, leaning down to kiss her again. "Not a day goes by lately that I am not completely overwhelmed by what we have. But I love you, and I'm so grateful for the day that you were willing to give us a shot." Sam's arms wrapped around his neck and pulled him as tightly to her as they could, holding him as though she thought he would disappear.

"I love you," she whispered again. Neither of them spoke again, they simply clung to each other until they drifted off into sleep.


	9. Chapter 9

Sam sat in the empty mess, idly eating her lunch. She wasn't paying much attention to what exactly was on her fork at any given time, just eating mechanically and staring off into space. She'd hoped to eat with Daniel today, but he was tied up with some cataloguing that he was behind on.

"Hey stranger." A familiar voice came from above her, and Janet Frasier sat down across the table from Sam.

"Janet, hey. " Sam smiled distractedly. "What do you mean, stranger?" She asked, suddenly registering the odd word.

"Oh, just don't see you around that much anymore. Routine checks and stuff, but that's about it." Sam shrugged.

"Busy, I guess." She wanted to tell Janet about Daniel. She really, really did. The thought of Daniel, however indirect, made her grin.

"Okay, that's it. What is going on?" Janet said, the curiosity evident in her mind. "I mean, first there was your appointment a month and a half ago, I hardly see you anymore, and now you're distracted as all get out and randomly grinning. Who is he, Sam?" The two women had grown close over the years they'd worked together at the SGC and Janet could only think of one thing that would link all of these incidences. Sam blushed.

"Who's...who?" she asked, feigning innocence. Janet raised an eyebrow.

"You know you're a bad liar, right Sam? " she asked. Sam rolled her eyes.

"Look. I can't talk about it right now. Are you off call this weekend?" Janet nodded. "Come over Saturday. I'll make coffee. We'll talk." Janet eyed her suspiciously but nodded again.

"Sure, Sam." Sam smiled in relief.

"Great. Now I guess I'd better get back to the lab." She scooped up her dishes to put them on the rack and left the mess, leaving a still-confused doctor in her wake.

*********

"So...Janet's coming over tomorrow." Sam said, snuggling back into Daniel's arms. They'd just finished dinner and were sitting on the couch.

"You want me to go out while she's here? I could get groceries or something," Daniel said reluctantly.

"No." Sam said. "I'm going to tell her about us anyway. You might as well be here. Maybe stay out of the living room at first, though...I'll tell her alone and then you can come out."

"You sure you want to do that? What about..." he trailed off.

"I'm sure. Janet won't tell. It's going to come out eventually anyway, especially if things keep going well," she smiled, and leaned up to kiss his jaw lightly before continuing, "and Janet is the closest thing I've had to a close female friend in a long time. I feel like she should know." Daniel nodded.

"Sure, Sam. Whatever you want." Daniel smiled and kissed the top of Sam's head. Sam smiled and snuggled in tighter to his chest.

*********

The doorbell rang and Sam walked to answer it after brushing a light kiss across Daniel's cheek and leaving the bedroom. She took a breath to calm her unsteady nerves as she pulled the door open.

"Hey, Janet!" She said.

"Hi, Sam. I brought chocolate," she said, holding up a small box. "I figured nothing goes better with coffee than chocolate." Sam laughed.

"Chocolate goes great with anything. Thanks. Come on in." She stepped back and waited as Janet took off her shoes and jacket. "So, I decided to have him over. While you're here. I mean, he's usually here, or I'm there, on the weekends anyway, so I figured why not?" Janet nodded slowly, confused by Sam's obvious nervousness, as she followed Sam into the living room. The two women sat on the couch.

"Okay, so....who is he?" Janet asked, cutting directly to the point. Sam blushed. "Samantha, you are practically glowing. This guy must be something. Do I even know him?" Sam's blush grew brighter and she nodded.

"Daniel and I have been seeing each other for a little over three months."

"Daniel....Jackson?" Janet asked incredulously.

"The one and only," Sam said. Her voice was light but it was clear Janet's reaction was making her apprehensive. Janet glanced around.

"I...thought you said he was here?" she asked, confused. Sam grinned.

"He's here. He's just in the bedroom. I figured I'd check your reaction first." Janet laughed.

"Well, obviously I'm happy for you, Sam. This is great. I won't lie, I've been wondering if you two would ever open your eyes, turn around and see what was right in front of you. Well, whether you would--I've seen Daniel looking at you for ages now. But..." her voice trailed off.

"What, Janet?" Sam asked.

"Aren't you worried? You know, about SG1? I know Daniel's technically civilian, but he does work for the Air Force."

"That's why nobody knows about us. We are worried. We don't want the team split up. So, until we can figure out a better solution...here we are. Nothing but appropriate at work, practically living together on the weekends unless we're offworld." Sam sighed wistfully. "I wish we didn't have to keep it a secret, but for now it's how it has to be." Janet nodded.

"I understand. So come on then. Are you going to give me details, or what?" Sam laughed.

"Sure. Mind if I call Daniel? I kind of feel bad having him shut away." Janet laughed and waved her hand dismissively.

"Go for it, I should probably congratulate him too." Sam quickly left the room, returning a few moments later holding Daniel's hand.

"Hey, Janet."

"Hi, Daniel. It's about time. Did I mention that, Sam? That it's about time? Because it is." she laughed.

"More or less." Sam grinned as she and Daniel sat on the couch.

"Ok, so where are the details I asked for?" Janet asked.

"Uh, maybe I should go." Daniel said, his eyes shifting back and forth as the women laughed.

"Don't worry. I'll save the dirty stuff for when you're not around." Sam said, grinning at him. She launched into the story of how she and Daniel had gotten together, leaving out most of the parts about Jack, and Janet smiled when she saw them join hands again.

*********

"I should go. Thanks for dinner." Janet grinned. She'd stayed far longer than she had intended, deciding it would be okay since Cassie was spending the night at one of her friends' houses.

"See you later," Daniel said as he loaded their plates into the dishwasher. Sam walked Janet to the door.

"Thanks for coming over. It feels nice to finally have someone else who knows...although sometimes the secret was kind of exciting." Sam said, hugging her friend.

"Thanks for inviting me. I've got to say, when I figured out you were seeing someone I never guessed it was Daniel. You guys seem pretty serious."

"Yeah...I guess we are." Sam smiled.

"It's been a long time since I've seen you quite this happy, Sam. I'm glad."

"Thanks. I am happy." Sam said. "I'll see you on Monday."

"Yeah, see you Monday." Janet finished pulling up the zipper on her jacket and left quickly, slinging her small purse over her shoulder and waving as she shut the door quietly behind her. Sam headed back into the kitchen where Daniel was closing the dishwasher. She stepped behind him and wrapped her arms around his waist in a tight hug. He wiggled to loosen her grip a bit so he could turn and wrap his own arms around her.

"That went well, I'd say," he said, kissing the top of her head.

"Yeah. I'm glad. Janet just kept telling me it was about time I got my act together." Sam laughed. "She said she'd seen you looking at me for ages." Daniel grinned sheepishly in response.

"What?" Sam asked. "Had you been? Did i miss something somewhere?"

"You're very focused, Sam. It's one of the things I love about you." Daniel said, attempting to deflect her question.

"Don't distract me with compliments. How long?" Sam asked, her insatiable curiosity now piqued.

"Well..." Daniel said. Sam mock-glared at him. "Okay, so, maybe....a couple of years." Sam's expression quickly softened into a look of total incredulity.

"I had no idea..." Sam said softly.

"I felt blatantly obvious," Daniel said. "But you were my best friend, and anyway I knew how you felt about Jack, so I never said anything. I figured I didn't have a chance anyway."

"You would have had a chance." Sam said softly, bringing one hand up to stroke through his short hair. "But I think things happened exactly as they needed to."

"Agreed." Daniel said, as he bent his head down to cover the short distance between them and kissed her.


	10. Chapter 10

Christmas had arrived. The morning of Christmas Eve, SG-1 had arrived for their usual briefing only to be sent home by General Hammond.

"It's Christmas. I want to be at home with my family. You should be too. Go home. Enjoy the holidays." The team had stammered out some minor protestations but the General had waved them off. Somewhat confused, they had gone to collect their things before leaving the base.

"This is kind of great, actually. I don't actually know if you guys know this, but I love Christmas." Sam said. It was true, Daniel thought. She'd been decorating both of their houses since December first. "You should come over to my place tonight. We'll have a Christmas party." She smiled, a beam that lit up her face and made it impossible for anyone to turn her down.

*********

Daniel unlocked Sam's front door and stepped inside. Something smelled fantastic and he could hear Christmas music playing. He smiled at Sam's enthusiasm and shut the door behind him, juggling the grocery bags in his hands. He headed into the kitchen and paused at the entryway when he caught sight of Sam. She was wearing a Santa hat and dancing around to the cheerful holiday melodies as she put some chopped vegetables into a roasting pan. Daniel grinned. He watched her for a minute, setting the grocery bags down quietly. Sam spun around when she heard the crinkle of the plastic. She grinned at him and her blue eyes were sparkling. Daniel quickly crossed the room and pulled her into his arms, bending down to kiss her.

"This was a great idea, Sam. I'm sorry I was reluctant when you first suggested it." Reluctant may not have been the most accurate of words. He'd protested fairly heavily at first, actually. He'd gone along with it in the end to make her happy, but the smile on her face when he came in and saw her dancing around the kitchen had chased any doubt from his mind that this was what he wanted to do tonight. Her arms stretched up and wrapped around his neck as she snuggled into his chest for a moment.

"Thanks, Daniel. It'll be fun. I promise."

 

*********

It was fun, Daniel had to admit. Sam's love of Christmas was infectious. Jack and Teal'c had arrived around 3:00, separately but at almost the same time, and Sam had ushered them in enthusiastically.

"Nice tree, Carter. Whatcha watching?" he asked, peering at her TV set curiously. Sam laughed.

"Don't tell me you've never watched Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer, Sir. I watch it every year!" Jack shook his head.

"Nope, never seen it." Sam gaped at him.

"That's not right. Next you'll tell me you haven't watched Frosty, either!" she laughed when she saw Jack's blank expression. "Don't worry, Sir. By the end of the party I will have you thoroughly educated in proper Christmas movies." Jack rolled his eyes.

"Uh...can't wait?" he said.

"Just go with it, Jack." Daniel said, grinning and fighting the desperate urge to wrap his arms around Sam. It had been more than six months now, but Janet was still the only person at the SGC who knew about them. Jack shrugged.

"That was the plan, Daniel."

Suddenly, the doorbell rang. Sam's eyes narrowed as she went to answer it. As soon as she turned away, Daniel's face broke into a wide grin. He heard the click of Sam turning the door handle and then her cry of joy.

"Dad!"

Jack and Teal'c looked at Daniel curiously.

"After General Hammond told us to go home for Christmas, and mentioned spending time with his family, I waited at the base for awhile after everyone else left. I contacted the Tok'ra and arranged for Jacob to come visit Sam. She mentioned a couple of weeks ago that she hadn't been able to talk to him in awhile and she missed him." He had just finished explaining when Sam came into the room with Jacob close behind her.

"Jacob! Good to see you." Jack said, extending his hand to shake the other man's.

"Nice to see you, Jack. Teal'c, how are you?" he asked.

"I am well, Jacob Carter. And you?" Teal'c asked with a slight incline of his head.

"I'm fine, Teal'c, thanks. Daniel, I can't thank you enough for letting me know that you were all having this get together."

"I'm just glad you could make it, Jacob." Daniel said, grinning. His eyes met Sam's and she mouthed a silent thanks to him, her eyes full of promise for later that night. His smile softened slightly as he looked at her.

A loud buzz sounded from the kitchen, interrupting their not-so-private moment. Sam jumped and scurried into the kitchen to put the finishing touches on dinner. The four men stood in the living room, slightly awkwardly, until something on the television caught Jack's eye.

"What the fuck? Is that bigfoot? Why is it putting the star on the Christmas tree?"

*********

A few hours later, they had finished dinner and had moved the party to Sam's living room. She had, much to Jack's relief, turned off the Christmas cartoons and now there was just Christmas music wafting from the CD player.

"Major Carter. Thank you for inviting me to your holiday party. I do, however, need to return to the base. It is growing late." Teal'c said. Sam glanced at the clock.

"Woah, I guess it is, isn't it? Sure, Teal'c. I'm really glad you came!"

"I'd better go too. Thanks, Carter." Jack said.

"You sure, Sir?" Sam asked.

"Yeah, I'm sure. Time to let you spend some time with your dad. How long are you on Earth, Jacob?" he asked.

"Just a day or two. It's not a holiday for the Tok'ra, but they decided they could do without me for a little while." Jacob said, smiling.

"Well, it was good to see you."

"You too. And you, Teal'c. "

"We will see each other again soon, Jacob Carter. Of that I am certain." Sam stood up at the same time as Jack and Teal'c.

"I'll walk you guys out." she said. The three of them headed for the front door. Daniel was grateful neither Jack or Teal'c (mostly Jack, admittedly, he wasn't worried about Teal'c) had said anything about his silence regarding staying or going. As soon as they were out of earshot, Jacob turned to Daniel.

"How long have you and Sam been seeing each other?" he asked.

"Uh, what?" Daniel asked, taken off guard.

"Oh come on, Daniel. I figured it out when you contacted me, and I've only had my suspicions confirmed the longer I've been here with you two." He evidently noted the panic on Daniel's face because he quickly added,

"I'm not going to say anything at the SGC. Clearly you two are keeping this under wraps. But you should know I'm happy for you both. I don't remember the last time I saw Samantha smile this much. She's happy, for the first time in as long as I can remember." Daniel smiled.

"I sure hope so. It's been more than six months." he said, answering Jacob's previous question. They heard the door click shut from the hall, and then there was a loud crash.

"Sam?" Daniel asked, loudly. No response. He jumped up and ran into the hallway, Jacob close behind him. Sam was laying on the floor next to the front door.

"Sam!" Daniel shouted, crouching next to her. "Jacob, she's unconscious. Her cell phone is on the table there-call Janet Fraiser. I'm taking her to the infirmary at the SGC." He picked her up carefully as Jacob looked for the number in Sam's phone address book.

Sam stirred slightly as Daniel scooped her into his arms, her head lolling against his chest.

"Daniel?" she murmured.

"Shh, Sam."

"I don't feel well."

"I can see that. I'm taking you to see Janet, right now." He was halfway through his sentence when she fell unconscious again.


	11. Chapter 11

Sam squirmed uncomfortably. She was on her back-why was she on her back? She hated sleeping on her back-but there was pressure on her arm when she tried to roll over. She opened her eyes, ready to push Daniel off her arm so she could roll to her side.

"Sam." Relief was evident in Daniel's voice. He was sitting beside her. Sam glanced around.

"Daniel?" she asked, confused. "Why am I in the infirmary?"

"You passed out at home, Sam. You hit your head on the table by the door when you fell but Janet says you're alright." Sam nodded. She vaguely remembered Daniel picking her up off the ground. She'd felt safe, wrapped in his arms like that, and then she guessed she'd passed out again.

"You're awake." Janet approached from behind Daniel and grinned at her friend. "Better not do that again. I've never seen two grown men so scared."

"Dad!' Sam exclaimed, suddenly remembering that Jacob had been there.

"He's just waiting outside. Daniel, can you go tell Jacob that Sam's alright? I've got to talk to her anyway." Daniel nodded uncertainly.

"Don't worry, Daniel. I'll tell you what's going on after. Ok?" Sam said, smiling at him. She was feeling much better than she had just before she'd passed out. Probably just exhaustion, she thought to herself. As soon as Daniel had left the room, Janet sat beside her.

"So, it's nothing, ah, life threatening." Janet said carefully. Her pause before deciding on "life threatening" concerned Sam.

"What do you mean, Janet?" Sam asked, looking at her curiously. Janet looked vaguely uncomfortable.

"You fainted because you're moderately anaemic right now, Sam. It's not a major problem. You'll just have to take an iron supplement. But..." she paused again.

"Janet, come on. I know you're my friend, but you're also my doctor. Pretend it's not me. Pretend I'm any other patient. What is going on?" She was starting to get worried and just a little annoyed. Janet had never had a problem telling her what was going on with her body before.

"Sam...you're anaemic because you're pregnant." Sam's jaw went slack and her eyes widened as she stared at Janet.

"Um. I'm sorry. What?" she asked incredulously.

"You're pregnant, Sam. About six weeks. When your bloodwork came back the way it did, I looked at all the tests that were done to it. Your iron levels were the first thing I checked. I had a closer look at the results when I saw how anaemic you were simply because you don't have a history of anaemia. When I saw the positive pregnancy result, I did an ultrasound."

Sam was nauseous.

"Janet, I...how is this even possible?" she asked, confused.

"You know as well as I do the pills aren't 100%, Sam. They're good, but they're not a sure bet."

"I can't do it." Sam's voice shook. Janet ran a hand over her hair.

"I'm going to send Daniel in, okay? I'll get your dad to keep waiting outside, and I'll arrange some quarters on base for him. Your IV will be ready to come out in about fifteen minutes and then you can go home. I'm going to prescribe some iron pills and vitamins that you should take at breakfast. Janet tilted the bed so that it was sitting almost fully upright and squeezed her friends hand.

"I know you've got some thinking to do, Sam. Whatever you decide, you'll get through this. You always do."

"Thanks, Janet." Sam's voice was distant. As her friend left to get Daniel, Sam's eyes filled with tears.

***

Daniel sat in the chair he'd occupied before, holding Sam's hand and staring at her. Or, more accurately, staring at her stomach.

"So you're..." he trailed off.

"Yup."

"And this is..."

"Daniel, are you ever going to form a full sentence again?" she tried to pass it off as a joke but her voice was irritated.

"Sorry, Sam. I'm just...a little surprised." he said. Sam glared at him.

"YOU are surprised?" she blurted out. Her eyes widened and she looked down at her lap. "I'm sorry."

"No, no, it's ok. I mean, of course this is shocking for you, Sam. But I mean...it's not all bad, is it?" He looked up at her, letting go of her hand with one of his and tilting her chin so that she was looking at him.

"Daniel, I can't do this. This wasn't in the plan. I mean, not yet. One day, sure, but right now? We're always here, and there's so much risk for us, and..." she trailed off.

"Sam, that's not what's bothering you. You're leaving something out." His blue eyes pierced hers, and she looked down again.

"Sam. Look at me. What's really bothering you?" he asked her.

"I'm afraid, Daniel," she snapped. "I'm afraid, okay? I'm afraid because I love you, but this, us? This is still new, relatively. And I'm afraid because what if you decide it's too much?" Her eyes filled with tears again, and this time she couldn't fight them back.

"I'm afraid of this scaring you off. I'm scared to death of losing you. And God, I don't know, maybe this is all hormones talking. But I don't even know if I can do this with you, Daniel. I sure as hell can't do it without you." She broke off, pulling her hand free from Daniel's and rubbing it hard underneath her eyes. Daniel waited for a minute until she seemed calmer.

"Sam. I'm not going anywhere. Honestly I'm a little hurt that you'd even think it. But if you need to hear it, there you go. I love you, Sam. I'm not leaving. Hell," he chuckled. "if you want to get rid of me you'll have to change the locks on your house. And move. And join the witness protection program." He stopped. "Okay, that sounded really creepy." Sam giggled.

"The point is, Sam...I'm not scared. I know you can do anything. I know we can do anything. I'm not trying to force this. It's your body. But...whatever you decide? I'm here. We'll work things out. We always do." He ran his hand over her cheek gently. "I love you." Sam nodded, feeling like her voice was stuck in her throat.

Just then, the IV beeped.

"Thank God. Janet said I could go as soon as I was unhooked. She's got some pills I'll have to take every day. I want to get home. My dad's going to stay on base." Daniel nodded.

"Want me to get Janet?" Sam nodded.

"Please." Daniel moved to stand up. "Daniel?" she asked, grabbing his hand when he was halfway up.

"Yeah, Sam?" he asked. She pulled him towards her and kissed him softly.

"Thanks." It didn't seem like enough, but she couldn't manage to formulate the words.

"It's nothing. No, that's not right. It's everything. For you, anything and everything." He placed a light kiss on her forehead before going to talk to Janet.

***

It was four in the morning before Sam and Daniel finally arrived back at Sam's house and, thoroughly exhausted, crawled into bed. Daniel pulled Sam into his arms as they lay down.

"Sleep well, Sam," he whispered as she snuggled into his chest.

"Love you, Daniel." she responded softly as sleep overtook both of their bodies.

They woke a few hours later to the phone ringing from the kitchen.

"Ugh, shut the phone off." Daniel whined.

"It's in the kitchen." Sam grumbled. "I've really got to start turning off the ringer at night." she glanced at the clock and sighed. "Although it is ten already. We should probably get up. I bet that's my dad, and he's probably worried. Did you..." she trailed off.

"I didn't tell him. Well, not everything. He knows you were anaemic and that's why you fainted. I didn't tell him what was causing the anaemia, though." Sam nodded.

"Thanks, Daniel." She smiled as the phone stopped ringing. "That's better. I'll check the messages in a few minutes." She rubbed some sleep from her eyes as she sat up. Daniel leaned up on one arm and looked at her, his fingers trailing along her arm.

"How are you feeling?" he asked.

"I'm okay, you know, all things considered." Daniel nodded. Sam paused, choosing her next words carefully as she looked into Daniel's bright blue eyes, unhidden by his glasses first thing in the morning.

"I guess we'll have to tell the others about us. The team. General Hammond." Daniel sat up fully, obviously startled, but never breaking his fingers' gentle contact with her arm. Sam smiled.

"Well, it's not like anyone is going to believe it's immaculate conception." Sam giggled. "Besides, if I'm putting in my resignation...they deserve to know why." Her voice was soft as she smiled at Daniel.

"Your resignation...Sam?" Daniel asked, evidently still not quite following her thought pattern.

"I'm going to get a research position, Daniel. I can't very well be off world more often than I'm on world if..." she trailed off, allowing him to fill in the blanks himself. Understanding dawned in his eyes and she could see him fighting back a smile.

"Sam. Are you sure about this?" He was trying to keep his voice steady, Sam could hear it, but he really wasn't good at hiding things from her. She nodded.

"Positive," she said, her voice clear as she looked directly into his eyes. Daniel's face broke into a grin and he pulled her into his arms tightly.

"Merry Christmas, Daniel." Sam murmured into his neck, kissing him as she wrapped her arms around his shoulders.

"Merry Christmas, Sam." He released his hold on her slightly to kiss her slowly before gently cupping her face in his large hands. "I love you."

"I love you, too." She said, her voice steady as she smiled, her eyes dampening again.

For the first time in a very long time, Sam had no idea what the future held for her. But suddenly, she realised, the uncertainty wasn't as terrifying as it might once have been.

End.


End file.
